US court convicts Nigerian over $7.5m cyber fraud targeting charities
A federal court in Greenbelt, Maryland, has convicted a Nigerian national, Olusegun Samson Adejorin, for masterminding a sophisticated cyber fraud that diverted more than $7.5 million from two charitable organisations in the United States.
Adejorin, 32, was found guilty after a six-day jury trial that ended on December 18, 2025. The verdict was announced on Thursday by the U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, Kelly O. Hayes.
He was convicted on multiple counts, including wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and unauthorised access to protected computer systems.
Prosecutors told the court that between June and August 2020, Adejorin infiltrated email accounts belonging to staff of a Maryland-based investment services charity and a separate nonprofit organisation in New York.
Using spoofed internet domains, he posed as legitimate employees of the New York charity and sent fraudulent fund withdrawal requests to the Maryland firm.
To strengthen the deception, Adejorin also compromised the email accounts of Maryland staff and used them to transmit fake approvals and confirmations, making the transactions appear authentic.
As a result of the scheme, more than $7.5 million was wrongly released into accounts controlled by the defendant instead of being transferred to the intended beneficiary.
Investigations revealed that the operation involved advanced technical methods.
Adejorin reportedly obtained specialised software to harvest email login credentials and concealed fraudulent messages by moving them within victims’ inboxes to avoid detection.
He also bypassed internal controls, including mandatory approvals for withdrawals above $10,000, by taking over the email accounts of authorised personnel.
Adejorin was arrested in Ghana on December 29, 2023, following a request from U.S. authorities, and was extradited to the United States on August 30, 2024.
Officials said the arrest and extradition were made possible through cooperation between U.S. and Ghanaian law enforcement agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Ghana’s Economic and Organised Crime Office, the Ghana Police Service and the National Intelligence Bureau.
The conviction exposes Adejorin to lengthy prison terms. Each of the five wire fraud counts carries a maximum sentence of 20 years, while unauthorised computer access attracts up to five years’ imprisonment.
The aggravated identity theft charge carries a mandatory consecutive two-year prison term. Sentencing has been fixed for April 10, 2026, before U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang.
The prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua Rosenthal and Darren S. Gardner, with the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs coordinating the extradition process.
Authorities said the case highlights the growing threat of business email compromise scams, particularly against charitable organisations, and underscores the importance of international cooperation in combating cross-border cybercrime.
